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Unearthed E.T. Atari Game Cartridges Score $108K At Auction
MojoKid writes: Hundreds of Atari 2600 cartridges of E.T. The Extra Terrestrial that were excavated last year from a landfill in Alamogordo, New Mexico collectively raked in nearly $108,000 through eBay auctions. Some $65,000 of that will go to the city of Alamogordo, while the Tularosa Basin Historical Society will receive over $16,000. Over $26,600 went to shipping fees and other expenses. A team of excavators led by operational consultant Joe Lewandowski unearthed the E.T. cartridges in front of a film crew. The high profile (among gaming historians) dig was the basis a documentary called Atari: Game Over, which is available for free through the Microsoft Store.
"The only sane reason I could see to dig the things up is so that they could be properly recycled..."
The "sane" reason for digging them up is that they were apparently worth $108,000 at auction. Very sane.
As far as a sane reason for buying one, I'm at a loss. Nostalgia?